Shoe-sewing machine.



F. ROLLINSl SHOE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR-25. I916.

Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

FRANK BOLLINS OF NEWIBURYPORT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESH ASSIGN- MENTS, TO UNITED SHOE A. CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

MACHINERY CORPOBQTION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY,

- SHOE-SEWING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

Application filed March 25, 1916. Serial No. 86,740.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK RoLLINs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newburyport, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoe- SeWing Machines; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as w1l1 enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to Wax thread outsole shoe sewing machines, and more particularly to mechanism employed in such ma chines for cutting a slit, groove or channel in the sole of a boot or shoe to receive the stitches of the outseam.

The object of the present invention is to provide an improved mechanism for out sole shoe sewing machines which will accurately and effectively form a st1tch-rece1ving slit, groove or channel in the sole in advance of the stitch forming mechanlsm.

In accordance with this object, one feature of the invention contemplates the provision in an outsole shoe sewing machine having a presser foot and work feeding means, of a knife for forming a stitch-receiving slit, groove or channel mounted in the presser foot so as to be adjustablein the line of feed relative to the feeding means. In the form of the invention hereinafter illustratedand described, the knife for forming the stitchreceiving cut in the sole removes a strip of material so as to form a shallow groove. It is to be understood, however, that the invention contemplates the use of any form of knife which will form a stitch receiving cut in the sole and that the term grooving knife is used in the claims as a matter of convenience and is intended to cover any form of knife which will make a groove, incision, slit, or channel to receive the stitches of the outseam.

Outsole shoe sewing machines are usually provided with an awl for piercing and feedmg the work, and the mechanism for actuating this awl is provided with means for adjustment whereby the feeding'stroke of the awl may be varied. The aWl is so actuated that it comes into line with the needle at the end of its feeding movement, any variation in the feeding movement of the awl to give more of less stitches to the inch being secured by varying the'extent of the return movement of the awl while out of engagement with the work. tended primarily for use in an outsole shoe sewing machine in which the work is fed by means of an awl operating as above described. The embodiment of the invention in such a machine enables the grooving knife to be located as near to the awl as the particular conditions under which the machine is operating will permit and thus form a stitch receiving groove located on the sole in the proper position to receive the stitches of the outseam. The advantages secured by having the grooving knife located as close as possible to the feeding awl are particularly noticeable while sewing around the toe portion of a shoe where the swinging of the shoe has a tendency to displace the grooving knife from the line of feed and cause the groove to be cut in the sole at one side of the line of stitches.

The present invention also consists in .certain features of construction, combinations and arrangements of parts which will hereinafter be described and set forth in the claims.

The various features of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of those portions of an outsole sewing machine which are necessary to illustrate the application of the present invention thereto; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the presser foot embodying the preferred form of the invention,; Fig. 3 is. a side elevation of the presser foot, partly in section, showing the mounting of the grooving knife therein; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the presser foot; Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the presser foot with the parts separated to better show their relation; and Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view of the presser foot operating mechanism taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

The machine shown in the illustrated embodiment of the invention is substantially the same as that disclosed in the patent to Ashworth No. 1,233,539, July 17, 1917. This machine comprises a feed awl 10, a work support 12, and a cooperating presser foot 14 which is mounted upon the upper arm 16 of a presser foot bell crank lever ful: crumed at 18. The presser foot is actuated during .the operation of the machine, first to The present invention is in- Y justing bolt 46 engage yieldingly with the work, then positively to clamp the work during the formation of the stitch, and is finally released and held in yielding engagement with the work ,during the feeding movement of the work, after which the cycle of oper'ationis repeated. In order to accomplish these results the lower arm 20 of the presser foot bell crank lever is connected through a link 22 with an actuating lever 24 pivoted between its ends to a controlling bar 26. The controlling bar is locked at predetermined intervals in a head 28 by a locking device 30. The lower end of the actuating lever 24 is connected by a link 32 with a tension spring 34 which normally tends to swing the presser foot in a direction to move the presser foot into engagement with the work. The upper end of the actuating lever 24 is connected to the usual operating lever 36 by a link 38 to causethe operation of the actuating lever from a rotary cam disk 40. At the completion of the feeding movement of the work the controlling bar 26 is free to move, and the spring 34, through the actuating lever 24, holds the presser foot in yielding engagement with the work. Before the stitch is formed, the controlling bar 26 is locked in position and the cam. disk 40 operates through the lever 36 to swing the actuating lever 24 about the connection with the bar 26 to move termined distance the presser foot a predeand positively clamp the presser foot upon the work. The lock 30 is controlled in the usual manner and unlocks the bar 26 at the completion of the formation of the stitch, so that the resser foot will be released from its clamping engagement with the work during the feeding movement of the awl.

The outsole is grooved durin the sewing operation by a grooving kni e which is mounted in the .presser foot. To adapt the resser foot for grooving, while maintainmg its normal operation in clamping the work, the presser foot actuating mechanism is constructed substantiallythe same as that shown in the application of Ashworth, Serial No. 52,006, filed September 22, 1915. The actuating mechanism of the presser foot is arranged to adapt the presser foot for grooving by placing a lost motion connection between the presser foot bell crank lever and the actuating mechanism, which is arranged to permit the usual operation of the actuating mechanism without l ftmg the presser foot from the work. To this end, as shown in Fig. 6, a stud 42 is secured in the presser foot lever arm 20 and is loosely received in a slot 44 formed in the link 22, The extent of movement of the stud 42 relatively to the link 22 is determined by an admounted in the link 22 at right-angles to the stud 42 and havin a peripheral slot 48 of varying depth .ormed face of t line of feed, relatively to the awl. To this aaenaae I therein. With this construction, by adjusting the pin, 46 the clearancebetween th e peripheral slot and thestud'j il v may be varied as desired, to vary the eiztent of movement of the stud relativel to the link 22. The find 42is connected bv means of a spring 50 with a pin 52 which pivotally connects the controlling bar 26 with the lever 24. vWhen the actuating lever 24 is moved by the operating lever in a direction to lift the presser foot from the work, the spring 5O yieldingly holds the presser foot in contact with the work, and the link 22 ismoved relatively to the stud 42. In this way the presserfoot is yieldingly held in contact with the work as the awl 1O advances the work so that the grooving knife on the presser foot will be in continuous engagement with the work.

To permit the cutting point of the grooving knife to be positioned as closely as possible to the piercing position of the awl, it is made longitudinally adjustable, in the end the presser foot 14, Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5,

is provided with a slot 54 in which the awl reci rocates when feeding the work. The cutting knife 56 form the right side of the slot 54 and is formed in afblock 58 which is slidably mounted in a groove 60 in the presser foot. The back side of the knife block has a ranged to articulate with a serrated locking plate 64 secured in the presser foot. The knife block is locked in position against the plate 64 by means of a locking plate 66 and a screw 68. The locking plate has a pin 70 which enters a hole 72 in the knife block to hold the locking plate in position on the block. The forward edge of the locking plate is provided with a slot 7 4 which forms an extension of a groove 7 6 in the knife, so that the waste strip formed in grooving the sole may pass up through the groove 7 6 and slot 7 4 and be directed outwardly away from the machine. The locking plate and knife block are equipped with elongated slots 78 in which the screw 68 works, so that the knife block can be adjusted in the line of feed relatively to the piercing position of the awl. The. resser foot 14 has the usual guide 80,wh1ch fits in a slot of the arm 16 of the presser foot bell-crank lever so that the presser foot may be adjusted across the sole edge by means of screws 82 T 7 1 to locate the groove varying distances from the sole edge.

While it is preferred to employ the specific constructlon and arrangement of the serrated face 62 which is ar- 4 lot arts shown and described, it will be under- 1. An outsole shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a Work support, a presser 'foot, work feeding means, a grooving knife mounted on the presser foot, and means to adjust the knife on thepresser footin the line of feed relatively to the feeding means While maintaining the cutting edge of the knife a fixed distance below the lower face of the presser foot.

2. An outsole shoe sewing machine having, in combination, a Work support, a presser foot, a Work feeding aWl, and a grooving knife mounted on the presser foot and adjustable thereon in the direction of feed relatively to the aWl.

FRANK ROLLINS. 

